Longevity
by Jenna Ogilvie | Dec 9, 2014 | Commentary, Perspectives
Low-income people in this country are mired in a constant and unremitting fog of stress. This chronic stress is driven by housing insecurity, food insecurity, fear of crime, unemployment, exposure to pollution and poor education, often collectively...
by Laura DeStefano | Oct 15, 2014 | Discussion Paper, Perspectives
There once was a town in the heart of America where health seemed to come naturally for everyone. The town lay in the midst of a checkerboard of organic and wholesome farms. Fresh fruit and vegetables were plentiful and affordable. Within the town itself,...
by Jenna Ogilvie | Oct 15, 2013 | Discussion Paper, Perspectives
The purpose of this discussion paper is twofold: to identify progress in the use of evidence-based violence prevention programs and selected resources and to discuss the critical gap between the evidence and its translation into demonstrably effective...
by Laura DeStefano | Jul 16, 2013 | Commentary, Perspectives
Rising health care costs, increasing prevalence of chronic disease, persisting health care disparities and access issues, and the aging population underlie the urgent need for change in the U.S. health care system to simultaneously improve health and reduce costs...
by Laura DeStefano | Oct 4, 2012 | Commentary, Perspectives
Elder abuse is a global public health and human rights issue. Elder abuse includes physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, neglect (both caregiver and self-neglect), and financial exploitation. Despite the evidence suggesting that elder abuse is associated with...
by Laura DeStefano | May 4, 2012 | Commentary, Perspectives
Once again, the challenge of how to constrain rising health care expenditures has caught the public interest, stimulated by concerns over rising federal debt and limited ability to generate tax revenues. I recently chronicled my unsuccessful efforts at stimulating...
by Laura DeStefano | Apr 27, 2012 | Commentary, Perspectives
Health care in America is in crisis. Population health and patient outcomes are deteriorating relative to the rest of the developed world, and much of the health care delivered today is not based on rigorous scientific evidence. This is attributable, in large part, to...
by Laura DeStefano | Jan 27, 2012 | Commentary, Perspectives
We are spending 2.8 trillion dollars each year in the United States on health care—far more than any other country in the world. Interestingly, more than 75 percent of that sum is going toward chronic diseases. Chronic conditions can actually be prevented....
by Laura DeStefano | Jan 27, 2012 | Commentary, Perspectives
In 1965, when Medicare was enacted, spending for prescription drugs was less than $4 billion—so low that no one thought to include a drug benefit as part of Medicare. By 2003, the cost and importance of drug therapy was so high that Medicare Part D was enacted. Drug...
